Server Move/Forum Software Upgrade

[Ludachris]

Hey all, just wanted to give everyone a heads up about the upcoming server move and subsequent forum software upgrade. The goal is to get the forum updated to use a more modern forum software to help keep it secure and reduce spam, and at the same time allow for a more modern user experience - especially for those browsing on their phones. I realize some are comfortable with the vintage forum software that's in place now but it creates a lot of challenges, so hopefully all the active users here will embrace the coming changes, and I'll do my best to make it a smooth transition. Expect some downtime. I'll try to give some notice before we disable the forums.

I know there aren't nearly as many people participating in here compared to previous years, but if you have any feedback, feel free to share it here. I'd love to read it. Feel free to PM me about it too.

Thanks,

-Chris

 

[heavydoc]

Looking forward to see what is in store here

 

[Ludachris]

Looking forward to see what is in store here

 

[fatherdoug]

Change is good......Change is good........Change is.......Change......... I'll try.

 

[Jasperrc]

Glad the updates are happening. I've seen a couple of my favorite forums go down for good because the platform wasn't up to date and spammers made it miserable to participate.

 

[Fellro]

We've worked hard to keep the spammers out, but they sure are persistant. The last server update nearly vaporized us, so this is a necessary update.

 

[fatherdoug]

Thank you admins and support staff for keeping this alive!

 

[Beach66Bum]

Change is good......Change is good........Change is.......Change......... I'll try.

 

[fatherdoug]

Off topic, but Roy, did you paint your truck?

 

[DNFXDLI]

It had to be done guys, between the admin paying out of pocket for hosting and the fact that our software is pretty much steam powered, we could have lost everything.

I'm not planning on going anywhere, gotta keep you riffraff on the straight and narrow hahaha.

Really want to thank all of you for the support and it sounds like Chris will do a great job of reviving and moving the forum forward.

 

[kiwi f150]

Thank you admins and support staff for keeping this alive!

X2 for that Doug .... this is the first forum that i joined way back when i got my old 87 and the amount of great advice and info here was and still is a godsend.

Hats off to Duncan , Roger and Randy for doing all that they have done to keeping it alive going!!

 

[nobodyspecial]

Looking forward to see what the updates bring. Thanks guys!

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[Sparky83]

I know alot of forums start game areas on them for activity. But i really hope we never do that here. Time after time ive watched forums add that feature to "increase" foot traffic on the site. But all it ever does is divert attention from the forum itself. Only reason people tend to log in then is just to play the game on the forum. They never post.

 

[Ludachris]

I know alot of forums start game areas on them for activity. But i really hope we never do that here. Time after time ive watched forums add that feature to "increase" foot traffic on the site. But all it ever does is divert attention from the forum itself. Only reason people tend to log in then is just to play the game on the forum. They never post.

I've never really been a fan of gaming/arcade areas to be honest. I know they're popular on some sites, but I think the better path is to find ways to attract more in-depth posts from the users. One of the best parts of automotive forums tends to be build threads and the documenting of projects. That's one aspect I'd like to focus on more here. There is a lot of inspiration that comes from reading about other people's builds.

 

[Sparky83]

I've never really been a fan of gaming/arcade areas to be honest. I know they're popular on some sites, but I think the better path is to find ways to attract more in-depth posts from the users. One of the best parts of automotive forums tends to be build threads and the documenting of projects. That's one aspect I'd like to focus on more here. There is a lot of inspiration that comes from reading about other people's builds.

Agreed. And while ive never seen it here. Quelling of attitudes helps keep a forum active too. Ive seen a few go down hill fast when you get a self imposed "expert" on the forums that any time theres a post with something that doesnt agree with only their knowledge of mechanics they go on a rampage blasting that person over and over. Theres always more than one way to do something. It doesnt just have to be that persons way. Attitudes like that can chase potential members away. Especially if that person attitude keeps getting backed by admins and mods while suffocating others posts.

 

[Ludachris]

Agreed. And while ive never seen it here. Quelling of attitudes helps keep a forum active too. Ive seen a few go down hill fast when you get a self imposed "expert" on the forums that any time theres a post with something that doesnt agree with only their knowledge of mechanics they go on a rampage blasting that person over and over. Theres always more than one way to do something. It doesnt just have to be that persons way. Attitudes like that can chase potential members away. Especially if that person attitude keeps getting backed by admins and mods while suffocating others posts.

I've witnessed that as well over the years. You get some people who feel there is a need to call out "bad information", for the sake of keeping misinformation from being regurgitated. But as you pointed out, that has a way of limiting the sharing of ideas and information. If you know you're just going to be harassed or criticized for a detail in the information you share, why take the time to share it?

There has to be some push for balance.

 

[Ludachris]

Alright everyone, be prepared, the site might be offline starting really early tomorrow morning and maybe into the evening. If it's down over the weekend you know we ran into some challenges. It happens with these major software upgrades. We appreciate your patience.

 

[heavydoc]

Are you staying with vbulliten?

 

[Ludachris]

Are you staying with vbulliten?

Not a chance. When the vB forum software was sold off to Internet Brands (the same company that owns hundreds of the automotive forums out there) the quality of the software dropped off dramatically. We'll be using Xenforo forum software, which funny enough, was developed by some of the original vB developers. It's been known to be more stable and have a lot better support. I also like the fact that there is a bigger pool of developers available to do custom work on XF.

 

[Ludachris]

Just so everyone knows, the forum is now open using the new software but there is still a LOT more work I have to do on my end, so be prepared for some more changes here and there. Expect a few glitches right out of the gate - like broken links that point to the old forum URLs, working on that. I just needed to get the forum to a point where it was working before I could re-open it and allow people to start interacting again. There will be more features added in the coming weeks/months, a new logo to be created, a lot of clean up and reorganization to be done, etc. But at least the software is updated, and as a result, we have a lot more new features and functionality, just with that.



If you can't figure out how to do something here in the new software, reply here and ask. I realize that not everyone will be a fan of the change at first, but I hope you'll give it a solid chance. And hopefully, if you're not in love with it yet, maybe some of the work I'll be doing will help address your concerns. Always open to suggestions, and will do what I can to try and make it enjoyable for as many as I can.

If you're on an Android device you can launch the built-in mobile app for the site too. Sorry iPhone users, we don't have an app yet. Still waiting on Apple to change their silly policy that prevents our iOS app into their store.